The Beginning of The Tidy Project

Read Time: 2 min

I guess the title says it all. As part of my growth project, I’m moving forward and embracing a new approach to cleaning. The author, Marie Kondo, calls it “tidying,” I’ve been calling it cleaning, reorganizing, purging stuff…. the list goes on and on. Her version sounds more fun to me, so let’s call it tidying from now on!

I listened to the book on Audible over the course of 1 day. You can get the basic gist of the process within the first few chapters, but I really enjoyed her stories and examples, so had no problem completing the 4.5 hour book.

I love how she approaches the process with two simple concepts:

Does this item bring me joy?

Tidy by category, not room (mind blowing concept)

I also love how she talks about the items and implies that they need proper homes, either in your house or somewhere else. She uses Anthropomorphism while talking through the process. I have always talked in a similar fashion about objects and tasks but can’t think of many people, besides my husband, who talks like this on a regular basis. Needless to say, her approach really clicked with me.

While I was going through the book I found myself jumping from category to category in my mind and including all the kiddos things in the mix. This is when I started to feel overwhelmed. Then I got to the point in the book where she basically says, don’t worry about other people’s things, focus only on yours... ah, slight mental relief. So, my husband and I will tackle the overall house, our things, and their clothes, but that’s it.

I think the hope is that the kiddos will see the changes, feel the changes, hear the changes, and they will want to try it too. If this magic happens, they will learn the process and feel the results on their own.

I’m sending out universe vibes | They love their tidy rooms and they love being able to find exactly what they want when they want it.

The author says to do the full process as quickly as possible. I was thinking great… quick, let’s get it done this weekend. Then she said, “quick” usually takes 6-months. Eeks… I’m not that patient, but at the same time, we’ve been together 20 years, 3 houses, and added 2 kids and a dog, a weekend really isn’t a reasonable amount of time.

I looked on Pinterest and found many people have created awesome checklists to help themselves and others with the process. Here’s a pin that resonated with me.

Let’s get started – Clothes you are on notice!

Have you done KonMari method to your house already? Would you like to do the project with me? Let me know in the comments below or send me a note on the Contact page.